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Sunday, 12 February 2017

Taal heritage town

I spent today exploring the town. Several old houses are open to the public, mainly ones owned by people involved in the rebellion against Spanish rule in the late 19th century. There was a lot to take in but a few bits stuck. Mainly that the town was once where the lake is now but was moved about 300 years ago when the volcano erupted. Also at least some of the moving may have been quite literal as apparently wooden houses were picked up by gangs of men and carried to a new location.
I also found out that it is nearly impossible to look at a Philippines museum without a guide, and that they really can't cope with the idea of a single person travelling. Judging by the museum guestbooks Philippinos who visit Taal never come in groups of less than eight and every conversation today at some point included "How many are you?"